Must-Read Bitcoin and Blockchain Books

Understanding the fundamentals of Bitcoin and the vision of a new financial system can be difficult, to say the least. Just about everyone approaches Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies differently. Some people believe it will become the new standard and replace fiat currency. Others see blockchain having an even greater impact on our society and envision a future where all of our assets will be tokenized – imagine your stocks, bonds, real estate, and even your car title or medical records tokenized on a blockchain. For some people, the best thing about the technology is its anti-censorship properties. No authority can shut you down on a blockchain network that is truly immutable and decentralized.

Point being – Bitcoin and blockchain technology have a different meaning for everyone. I’ve compiled a list of what I believe to be the best books for understanding Bitcoin on both a technological and societal level. Read these books and discover what Bitcoin means to you.

1) The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking

By Saifedean Ammous, The Bitcoin Standard is a book that covers the history of money, our current financial system, and what role Bitcoin plays in all of it.

From the inside flap:

“While Bitcoin is a new invention of the digital age, the problem it purports to solve is as old as human society itself: transferring value across time and space. Ammous takes the reader on an engaging journey through the history of technologies performing the functions of money, from primitive systems of trading limestones and seashells, to metals, coins, the gold standard, and modern government debt. Exploring what gave these technologies their monetary role, and how most lost it, provides the reader with a good idea of what makes for sound money, and sets the stage for an economic discussion of its consequences for individual and societal future-orientation, capital accumulation, trade, peace, culture, and art.”

2) The Internet of Money Volume 1

The Internet of Money by the Bitcoin legend Andreas M. Antonopoulos is another novel covering the “why” of Bitcoin. It is a collection of talks by Andreas where he thoroughly explores how Bitcoin is fundamentally changing our approach to solving social, political, and economic problems through decentralized technology.

Details from Amazon:

“While many books explain the how of bitcoin, The Internet of Money delves into the why of bitcoin. Acclaimed information-security expert and author of Mastering Bitcoin, Andreas M. Antonopoulos examines and contextualizes the significance of bitcoin through a series of essays spanning the exhilarating maturation of this technology.

Bitcoin, a technological breakthrough quietly introduced to the world in 2008, is transforming much more than finance. Bitcoin is disrupting antiquated industries to bring financial independence to billions worldwide. In this book, Andreas explains why bitcoin is a financial and technological evolution with potential far exceeding the label ‘digital currency.’”

3) The Internet of Money Volume 2

Part 2 of The Internet of Money is another collection of speeches by Andreas M. Antonopoulos. Pair the two together for the ultimate compilation of speeches by Andreas.

Speeches include:

Introduction to Bitcoin

Blockchain vs Bullshit

Fake News, Fake Money

Currency Wars

Bubble Boy and the Sewer Rat

Rocket Science and Ethereum’s Killer App

And many more

4) Mastering Bitcoin

Speaking of Andreas M. Antonopoulos, Mastering Bitcoin is another one of his must-read titles for those who wish to start programming on Bitcoin’s blockchain. For ETH enthusiasts, be sure to also check out Mastering Ethereum.

Product Description:

“Join the technological revolution that’s taking the world of finance by storm. Mastering Bitcoin is your guide through the seemingly complex world of bitcoin, providing the knowledge you need to participate in the internet of money.

Bitcoin, the first successful decentralized digital currency, is still in its early stages and yet it’s already spawned a multi-billion dollar global economy. This economy is open to anyone with the knowledge and passion to participate. Mastering Bitcoin provides the knowledge. You simply supply the passion.”

5) The Book of Satoshi: The Collected Writing of Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Nakamoto

Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin, mysteriously disappeared shortly after Bitcoin’s network went live. Prior to his departure, Nakamoto had made a plethora of online posts and e-mails detailing his vision for Bitcoin. The Book of Satoshi: The Collected Writing of Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Nakamoto is a collection of those posts compiled for you, the reader, to understand everything we know about Satoshi before his disappearance.

From Amazon:

Like the currency he created, the identity of Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoto is virtual, existing only online. The Nakamoto persona, which may represent an individual or a group, exists only in the online publications that introduced and explained Bitcoin during its earliest days. Here, collected and professionally published for the first time are the essential writings that detail Bitcoin’s creation.

Included are

Satoshi Nakamoto Emails and Posts on Computer Forums Presented in Chronological Order

Bitcoin Fundamentals Presented in Layman’s Terms

Bitcoin’s Potential and Profound Economic Implications

The Seminal Paper Which Started It All

6) Visual Guide to Chart Patterns

Though it is not directly related to Bitcoin, anyone in the cryptocurrency space should have a fair understanding of technical analysis. Visual Guide to Chart Patterns is a step-by-step visual guide to spotting potential price movements. You will learn how to recognize patterns and setups to make you a better trader.

From the official product description:

“Nearly 200 color charts assist in providing a step-by-step approach to finding those footprints, interpreting them, and following them. Popular patterns such as head-and-shoulders, double tops and bottoms, triangles, gaps, flags, and pennants are just a few of the many patterns explored throughout the book.

For the sophisticated trader or investor, the book also provides statistical research to support the claims of pattern behavior, trading signals, and setups, in an easy to understand way.

Covers the most popular and common chart patterns as well as lesser-known ones like throwbacks, pullbacks, and busted patterns

Incorporates quizzes, step-by-step exercises, enhanced graphics and video tutorials to immerse the reader in the world of chart patterns

Designed for use by investors and traders, from beginners to experts looking for a practical, easy-to-use guide, comprehensive reference, Bloomberg Visual Guide to Chart Patterns provides a sophisticated introduction to the world of chart patterns.”

7) Debt: The First 5,000 Years

This book also isn’t directly related to Bitcoin, but in order to understand Bitcoin’s potential impact on our financial system it is important to understand mankind’s history of debt and money. Debt: The First 5,000 Years goes very, very far back – before the invention of coins and cash – to a time when our society divided into debtors and creditors.

More from Amazon:

“Graeber shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have been at the center of political debates from Italy to China, as well as sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like “guilt,” “sin,” and “redemption”) derive in large part from ancient debates about debt, and shape even our most basic ideas of right and wrong. We are still fighting these battles today without knowing it.”

Did I miss any must-read books for Bitcoin and Blockchain lovers? Let me know down in that comment section!